Above: Village elder Yusef Manasra facing the illegal Israeli settlement that threatens the future of Wadi Foquin. Yusef was 25 in 1948 when the Israeli army evacuated the village, forcing residents first into nearby hills and then into a UN refugee camp. In 1972, when villagers were allowed to return and rebuild, he vowed he would never be forced out of his home again. Yusef lived in Wadi Foquin until his death at age 95 on May 11, 2017. --Photo by Jakob Schiller

Netanyahu endorses expansion​of Betar Illit—take action

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the illegal settlement of Betar Illit in early August to celebrate the groundbreaking of its newest neighborhood.

In a cornerstone-laying ceremony on Thursday, August 3, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu symbolically scooped cement for a new 1,100-unit expansion of the ultra-orthodox Betar Illit settlement on lands belonging to the West Bank village of Wadi Foquin. The new units will cover a third hilltop overlooking the Palestinian village.

According to Wadi Foquin Mayor Ahmad Sokar, Israeli forces closed off the only entrance to the village with dirt mounds for several hours because of the event, preventing residents from passing.

Part of the larger plan will link Betar Illit to Jerusalem by building a new road that would shorten the commute time to 15 to 20 minutes. Not only are Wadi Foquin leaders concerned about this latest expansion of Betar Illit, but with plans for new road development they fear the closure of their current access road.

Since construction of Betar Illit began in 1987 on the east side of Wadi Foquin, the Israeli government has annexed hundreds of acres of village land for the settlement’s development, destroying grazing lands, orchards, natural springs, and farmland in the process. In addition, according to Wadi Foquin community development director Ata Manasra, about 25 acres of cropland have been contaminated by sewage discharge from Betar Illit, now estimated to house more than 50,000 settlers, making it the second-largest settlement in the West Bank. Settlements are now also encroaching on the village from the Israeli town of Tzur Hadassa on the west.

The Israeli government has helped establish about 125 of these Jewish-only neighborhoods on Palestinian lands since capturing the West Bank in 1967, spending billions of dollars on homes, roads, gas and electricity, water, and communications to support them. Settlements are considered illegal under several international laws, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 49, Paragraph 6, which reads: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” Since 1967 every U.S. administration has opposed the settlements and has viewed settlement expansion as a major obstacle to peace in the region.

​Speak out against the expansion

​​• Call the State Department at (202) 647-6575 to oppose expansion of the illegal settlement of Betar Illit. Request international intervention.​Suggested script: “It has come to my attention that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu participated in a public ceremony on August 3rd, announcing 1,100 new settlement units on land belonging to the Palestinian village of Wadi Foquin. This is a defiant violation of international law and undermines any prospects for peace. I urge the State Department to initiate intervention to block this and any other planned settlement expansions.”

• Call your U.S. representatives and senators and ask them to call the State Department with the same request.

​Friends of Wadi Foquin is planning a visit to Washington, D.C. to underscore the urgency of the situation.

Wadi Foquin is the site of a community development project supported through the United Methodist Church's General Board of Global Ministries (Advance project #3021565).A resolution supporting Wadi Foquin was passed at the church's May 2016 General Conference acknowledging the challenges of settlement expansion and recent land confiscation orders. The resolution calls for accountability from the Israeli government for the destruction of land and life in Wadi Foquin. It also calls on U.S. officials to contact the Israeli government to immediately halt the illegal Israeli settlements and confiscation of Palestinian land.​

​Village leader to visit California in September

​Ata Manasra, coordinator of the Narjes community development project in Wadi Foquin, will visit the California-Nevada Annual Conference Sept. 10–20 for an educational and fundraising speaking tour. The following speaking engagements are open to the public:

New road opens in Wadi Foquin

Wadi Foquin Mayor Ahmad Sokar speaking at the Aug. 24, 2017, inauguration of a new road built in the village by USAID/ANERA—a project initiated during the mayor's visit to Washington, DC, in 2016—plus before and after photos. For a short video of the celebration, click ﻿﻿﻿﻿here﻿﻿﻿﻿ .

Soccer field to be covered with grass

Use of Wadi's Foquin's new soccer field has been temporarily suspended pending installation of grass by the Palestinian Ministry of Youth and Sports. The Green Valley Club, a young men's soccer team fielded by the Wadi Foquin Youth Club, had been training on the dirt field at night under the solar-powered lights for games with other teams in the West Bank.

​The nearby playground has also been expanded to the southern wall of the soccer field, providing space for large village meetings and for dancing.

The soccer field was largely funded by donations made through Friends of Wadi Foquin and the United Methodist Advance #3021565. According to community development director Ata Manasra, "It is the most important project we have done with Friends of Wadi Foquin."

2018 trip forming

Plans are being made for a spring 2018 Holy Land pilgrimage to Israel and the West Bank with a special visit to Wadi Foquin. Dates TBD. For more information, contact ﻿Rev. Mike Friedrich.﻿